Released: February 2013
For more information contact: Jodie Sprague or Steve Anderson at 1-800-835-2612.

USDA TO SURVEY FARMERS’ PLANTING INTENTIONS FOR 2013

Will corn acres increase in Montana? How will a decline in CRP acres impact Montana’s seeded acres? The March Agricultural Survey conducted by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) will survey 82,000 U.S. farmers in March 2013 to determine their plans for the upcoming growing season.

“Each year, the agriculture industry eagerly awaits USDA’s Prospective Plantings report, which provides the first survey-based estimates of U.S. farmers’ planting intentions for the year,” said Steve Anderson director of the NASS Montana Field Office. “The March Agricultural Survey provides the factual data that underpins these projections, making it one of the most important surveys we conduct each year.”

NASS will mail the survey questionnaire in late February, asking producers to provide information about the types of crops they intend to plant in 2013, how many acres they intend to plant, and the amounts of grain and oilseed they store on their farms. NASS encourages producers to respond via the Internet but also welcomes mail or fax responses and offers the opportunity for a telephone or personal interview to those producers who did not respond by the deadline..

NASS will compile and analyze the survey information and publish the results the annual Prospective Plantings report and quarterly Grain Stocks report, both to be released on March 28, 2013.

As with all NASS surveys, information provided by respondents is confidential by law. “NASS safeguards the privacy of all responses and publishes only state- and national-level data, ensuring that no individual operation or producer can be identified,” stated Anderson.

All reports are available on the NASS web site: http://www.nass.usda.gov. For more information on NASS surveys and reports, call the NASS Montana Field Office at 1-800-835-2612.